Tokyo Imperial Palace

The Imperial Palace gardens in Tokyo is everything you'd expect it to be, immaculate, tranquil and timeless.  It is not as old as you might think but it's history is crammed with stories of the Shogun and other iconic historic references.

It's size and location in the heart of Tokyo are such that at one time experts considered the land value of the Imperial Palace site to be greater than the value of all real estate in the state of California.  In this photo a security guard passes by one of the many structures on the palace grounds.